Carol of the Bells
by leapoffaith240
Summary: Harry arrives home just in time for Christmas after six months of Auror training. Ginny's been mad with worry, and to have Harry home has made her happier than ever. But then again... she hasn't seen Harry's Christmas present... Cute Harry/Ginny proposal!
1. Chapter 1 Harry Comes Home

Chapter 1- Harry Comes Home

This was totally ridiculous. Why wasn't he just Apparating? No...he has to do his absolute best to annoy the crap out of me. Because that's how Harry is... always the drama. Always having to make an entrance, that boy. It was hard to believe that the only reason he wasn't Apparatting was because it was "uncomfortable" after "all his work". Why did he have to do this to me?

I was standing at the train station; ten minutes until Harry's train was due to arrive. A hundred miles away from the Burrow, The Madrician train station was one of the only Wizarding train stations...most wizards [cough, Harry, cough] would just Apparate to where they needed to go. But some wizards liked to torture their girlfriends and make them wait thirty-six extra hours to see them after they'd been away for six months. But like I said, he liked to make entrances.

"Ginny? Ginny? Still conscious, darling sister?"

I heard the sound of by brother Fred's voice calling at me from what seemed like a far distance. I composed my face and turned slowly to look at him. His face was lit up by the setting sun, and his features showed a mocking smile. What? Was I not allowed to be anxious for Harry's return?

"Dear Freddie, you wouldn't want me to through you into the train tracks, would you?" I said, trying to mock him as much as he was me.

He laughed out loud, tilting his head back to add to the effect. He gave me a sly smile and went back to George, who was sitting about 50 meters away and immersed in a stack of papers.

"Oh, don't mind him, Ginny," Hermione said, approaching her, holding two steaming cups of hot chocolate and handing one to me. "He's just teasing you. Don't worry, Harry will destroy him when he gets home. He's halfway to being an Auror now, anyway."

Harry had been away for six months of Auror training and was coming home for another eight months. Hermione's words did little to comfort my nerves. I shivered, but it wasn't from the freezing December weather. Images of Death Eaters attacking the train or the train itself slipping on ice... I shuddered; Hermione noticed.

"Ginny, you do know that Harry isn't the only one on that train, right? There's at least sixty people on board. The conductor isn't going to... wreck or anything. Harry's going to be here," she said, looking me straight in the face with understanding in her smile.

I sighed, my forehead creasing again. I walked to a nearby bench and sat down. Normally I loved winter, but something had me irritable and touchy. I needed Harry back. Now.

Hermione sat down next to me as we sat and drank our hot chocolate, watching the other witches and wizards hurry along to catch their train or stand around waiting for relatives. It was amazing how many wizards even bothered with trains when we had Apparition. It was something I would just never understand.

My heart seemed to thump harder and faster as the minutes passed... four minutes... three minutes... two minutes... one minute... late... late... late.... My heart seemed ready to burst out of my chest when I heard a screech of tracks and the sound of a train pulling in.

I leapt to my feet; Hermione followed. I ran to where Harry would soon be stepping out... nearly tripping and giving myself a concussion in the process. There where many aggravated grunts and "heys" from wizards who where waiting, but I didn't care. Not now. I checked the name on the side of the train... The Madrician Elite. This was totally Harry's train. So I could not have cared less what that wizard was grunting to me about, because my heart was threatening to explode. Harry was here... finally here. My perfect Christmas present... Harry next to me as we listened to cheesy Christmas songs...sipping too-hot hot chocolate... standing under the mistletoe under falling snow... perfect. He would be home for another eight months before he was deported again, and then he'd be sent home after only two more months of training.

I stopped for a moment and examined my thoughts. I knew it wasn't normal. It was probably unhealthy. But I was completely in love with him. Every time I imagined myself in the future, it was always next to him, with him. I didn't want to think about when the relationship would end, because I didn't think I could bear it if he left me. I loved him, and I'd never felt that way before. I was the fearless Ginny Weasley, and everyone knew that I didn't put up with any crap. No one would've ever imagined me as being in love. But, truth was, there would never be anyone else. And I was expected to wait six months for him to come home. It still amazed me that I made it that far without going insane, but I'd made it all six months, and now he was almost here.

My heart was annoyingly loud; I was sure everyone around me could hear it. I tried to compose myself as I scanned the wizards exiting the train. It was after three minutes of pure agony, my heart beating so hard that it almost hurt, that Harry finally stepped off of the platform carrying a single bag and wearing a jacket and tie. How stunning he was... and he was only nineteen. His eyes scanned the crowed, and at last his eyes rested on mine. A huge smile spread across his face and lit up his beautiful eyes. He shoved a few people out of the way, ignoring their mundane complaints, and walked briskly toward me. I couldn't bear the wait, and I ran after him. I slammed into him, and he dropped his bag in surprise, staggering back with a chuckle. He laughed and put his arms around me in a tight embrace.

"Merry Christmas, love," he said, his sweet honey voice melting me to pieces. I placed my arms around him and held him tighter than I ever have before.

"I missed you," I whispered, still not quite fully believing he was here. I breathed in his beautiful scent... he smelled like peppermint and freshly baking bread and... winter. He smelled like winter. No one smelled like Harry.

"I missed you, too, love. I nearly went bloody mad without seeing you," he breathed into my ear. I knew I should be mad, but I just couldn't bring myself to be mad at him. He was here... finally here. I thought of how I felt two years ago... never sure if Harry was alive... always wondering if he was okay, wherever he was. Wondering how long I was going to be trapped in that bloody castle. Wondering when Harry would hold me again... if he would hold me again. And after his little stunt at the Battle of Hogwarts, after I'd experienced my world crashing around me and my blood stop dead cold... when my body went into a sort of trance, only the pain did not subside... when I heard a horrific, disgusting, terrible noise escape from my lips, a scream the world had never heard, a horror that man had never experienced. Harry was dead. That was the only thing my brain could process in that instant. And all at once, it hit me with terrible impact, and I saw flashes of every moment me and Harry shared, every kiss, every hug, every smile... all up to when I kissed him on his seventeenth birthday... it felt like a large metal pole was punched into my stomach, opening a huge gaping hole as I gasped for breath and the pain nearly destroyed me. I screamed again.

To feel Harry in my arms again was always more than I could believe after what he'd done at the Battle. I don't hold it against him, but he certainly did.

I pulled away to look at Harry's face... I saw he was just as happy as I was. Maybe happier... I couldn't tell. Oh... and... what was this? Did I sense that he was nervous? What could possibly make Harry nervous at a time like this? I didn't care for very long. I really didn't care.

I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him fiercely, and he kissed back. His hands traced my face as my fingers knotted in his beautiful hair, and my lips parted as I breathed in his wintry scent. All too soon, he released me. He pulled back so that our faces where just inches apart, and he gave me a stunning smile.

And then it began to snow for the first time that winter. 


	2. Chapter 2 Christmas Eve

Chapter 2- Christmas Eve

It was almost legendary how the temperature dropped. It went from about 37 degrees to about -3 degrees...in one day. It seemed nearly impossible, but I just couldn't get myself to believe in the word impossible with Harry right next to me.

If the insanely cold temperature wasn't enough, the snow and wind certainly was. It snowed a good two feet from the time of Harry's arrival and Christmas Eve. To make it even worse, the howling winds lashed through the air like whips, stabbing anyone who stepped outside. It was enough to keep everyone inside for Christmas Eve, which was exactly how I wanted it. The last thing I needed was Ron stealing Harry to go play stupid Quidditch outside, and he would've done exactly that, had it not been for the crazed weather.

So, I had everyone there Christmas Eve. It wasn't for my benefit, but it might as well have been. There was Bill, Percy, Fred and George, Ron and Hermione, of course, my dad, and even Charlie had come down for Christmas this year. The only down side was probably that Bill decided to bring his lovely French Toast with him. But it was remotely okay... Fleur had changed marginally from the time I'd first met her. Maybe it was because she was pregnant, but who knew. So everyone was there for Christmas, including the one I wanted the most.

Harry was probably happier than I'd ever seen him. He was almost bubbly... which is totally different for Harry, who's normally nice and quiet. But he was laughing his head off at jokes and hugging everyone excessively and spontaneously bursting into song with Ron, Fred, and George. At first, I thought he was just realy happy to be home, which was quite understandable. But suddenly, I remembered. Back at the train station, Harry had had a look of nervousness in his face. Something was making Harry nervous, but I didn't have the faintest idea why.

It was probably the Death Eaters stalking him again... wanting revenge... or maybe Voldemort wasn't dead after all and he wanted Harry dead... again... or he was in some sort of danger that he didn't want me to know about. It would be just my luck for Harry to come home and carry with him some stupid, noble obligation. I'd had enough of noble obligations for one lifetime. I wanted to tell myself that I was being ridiculous... that there was no way that Harry would be in any danger... when something struck me. I almost gasped aloud at the thought.

Harry was cheating on me.

It was so obvious! Oh my God, it was so obvious! and I didn't see it! Oh, he's acting strange... giving me funny looks... funny nervous looks... pulling away from the kisses... never seeming to look me straight in the eye... oh my God... it all fit!

There were so many women in Auror training that it made me want to puke! It would be so... so easy for him to do it... ugh! UGH! He. Was. Having. An... affair! UGH! I was such an idiot for not seeing it before. What would Harry Bloody Potter want with me? I was nothing but an insignificant 18 year old. I'm sure he was going to someone more his speed. Probably 20 or 21 years old... waist-length blond hair... electric blue eyes, probably drowned her face in make-up. UGH! Oh, I couldn't believe what an idiot I was. How could I not see this one coming? I mean... he broke up with me two years ago, saying that it was for "noble" purposes. Wow, I was an idiot. He never wanted to date me after that! These last two years where syncopated with random months of Auror training... "emergency drills"... oh my God, it all fit! Harry never wanted to get back together with me, and he's too much of a coward to break up with me again... but why? Oh, of course. He doesn't want Ron to break his face. That and maybe he didn't want me to go kill myself. Maybe me being obsessed with him was a turn-off. Maybe he was annoyed at me because I loved him so much.

Right then I caught myself.

"Because I loved him so much..."

Ouch.

All at once I realized. I would never, in a million years, be able to not love Harry. That much was clarified. No matter how much he's going to hurt me, I simply won't be able to hate him. I've been in love with him since the moment I first really saw him... since I was eleven years old. And even when I dated other guys, mostly to make Ron mad, I never really gave up on him. I'd told him this. I'd told him this when I could bet everything I owned on the fact that he loved me, too.

I felt my heart shatter.

***

I sat up at eleven o'clock that night. Actually, it was around 11:14 p.m., but whatever. I didn't care. Everyone was asleep. It was an old family tradition to go to bed early and to stay hidden from Santa. Ridiculous. But I was thankful enough for it, because I had the whole fireplace all to myself. With no Fred and George stalking and teasing me when all I wanted to do was cry.

Curled up on the sofa next to the fireplace, the heat radiating through my bones, I did nothing but think. All it was was a huge internal debate between two sides of me. One side was saying "Come on, move on, girl. He's been trying to lose you for almost three years now. Let it go." The other side was saying, "Why on earth would he go on this long? He may not like me, but he's not a bad enough person to lead me down the primroses. This is Harry Potter... he's not a bad person. So why hasn't he dumped me yet, hmm?" It was almost annoying how I couldn't stop changing my mind. Should I lose Harry? Should I just get it over with now? Or was it really just something stupid and mundane and I was just blowing this way out of proportion? I couldn't tell which was more likely.

But what else could it possibly be? What could he be hiding from me that he would be giving me all those looks and acting out and procrastinate coming home to see me? What could he possibly be doing but cheating? It was clear enough that something was on his mind, whether it be dumping me or keeping and using me or something completely different. Yes, there was definitely something Harry was hiding, even being optimistic couldn't deny that. But honestly! What could it possibly be if not cheating?

I wanted so badly to believe that I was wrong. But the part of me that "didn't put up with crap" wasn't buying it. It was no secret that I didn't put up with crap. I wasn't some dainty, garden party tea. I was the kind of girl who threw punches and hexed the hell out of anyone who gave me crap. But that didn't mean I was angry all the time and I just rebeled against everything, I was just... Ginny. And I wasn't about to be used. Oh, hell no. Not I, my friend, not I. So, when presented with a situation like this, how did I... what did I... do? This was the only guy I've ever loved, we're talking! And I knew that I wouldn't be able to get over him. But the thought of anyone using me just never even registered in my brain function. It just did not happen to me. I didn't let it happen to me. But what if it was happening at this very moment? What if Harry Potter was using me? I held back tears at the thought. And I could count on one freaking hand how many times I've cried in my life.

I heard the shuffling of feet behind me. I turned to see who could possibly be up at eleven o'clock at night on Christmas Eve. Probably Fred trying to jinx the Christmas tree or something.

But it was Harry.

He was wearing a plain white tee shirt, and his hair was as messy as ever. His glasses were crooked, but I don't think he knew it, so he'd probably just shoved them on in a hurry. He was standing hesitantly in the doorway, like he was debating whether or not to proceed. He noticed that I'd looked up and looked sheepishly over at me, like he was embarrassed that I'd caught him.

"Hey," he said. His voice shook slightly. Let me repeat that: his voice was shaking! Okay, this is fantastic. His voice is shaking. Great.

"Hey," I replied back quietly. "You know, it's traditional to stay asleep on Christmas Eve. To make sure Santa doesn't catch you."

Harry grinned and looked up from the floor at me. "You're one to talk," he said, still quietly but mildly teasing.

"So what are you doing down here? It's almost Christmas, you know," I informed him.

"Well, I could ask you the same question," he muttered, still grinning.

"I asked first."

"O-kay," he said, looking down sheepishly again,"if you need to know... I, er... I was...er...looking for you." The last three words came out in a blur.

Interesting. Lots of "ers" and hesitating. Very interesting. His whole body language screamed "liar". But then I saw him staring up at me, head still down, cheeks clearly burning in the dim light, biting his lip like he just confessed a murder. And somehow, the doubt began slipping through me like liquid, and I was beginning to believe that Harry wasn't lying when he said he was looking for me.

"Oh, well, er... why?"

"I dunno, I guess I just wanted to see you." He still stared at the floor, but he grinned sheepishly again. Harry was one of those people who clearly didn't like talking about feelings. "You're turn."

"Uh, well, I can't sleep. I was sort of wanting to be alone, actually, and I guess that's why I'm awake."

Harry's eyebrows pulled together and he shifted uncomfortably.

"Oh, er, I guess I'll just get out of your way then-"

"No, don't go!" I said hastily. That was pure impulse. Harry couldn't be deceiving me right now.

"Oh, okay," he said; I could here the relief in his voice.

It was silent for a long moment.

"Why don't you come sit?" I offered to break the silence.

Harry said nothing and walked over to sit beside me. He folded his hands in his lap and stared into the fire.

For a long time, we just sat there. There was no sound but the fire crackling peacefully and the murderous wind pounding outside. I wondered if he was planning on saying something; he was looking for me, wasn't he? Maybe he had forgotten what he was going to say. The flames in the fire danced as if synchronized with the wind outside as I watched it. It was silent for a long time. I glanced up for the first time, to find Harry staring at me. He did not look away, clearly unashamed that I'd caught him staring.

"Ginny?" He asked quietly. He turned his gaze to the floor as he spoke my name.

"Yeah?" I replied, a bit nervously. This was the first time we'd been alone in months. Many months. Who knew what he was getting at... I'm seeing someone else... I'm going active duty early... I'm being promoted... I'm moving...excuses, probably. Still, I couldn't shake the nerves.

"Can I ask you something?"

I laughed. "You just did."

He laughed too. "Yeah, I guess I did. But... if I asked you something... would you answer honestly?"

I exhaled nervously. "Probably. Depending on the question."

Harry did not laugh as I expected. He looked at the fire blazing in front of us. He was silent for a long while.

"Do you love me?" he muttered.

Well, that was unexpected.

It took me a solid two minutes to form a coherent thought. When I did, questions exploded like a freaking nuke inside my head.

Why was he asking me this? Why was he up in the middle of the night to ask me this? Why did he care? Did he really care at all? Or did he just want someone to admit that they loved him? What would he say if I said no? What would he say if I said yes? What would he say if I didn't answer at all? Did he really want to know? Why was he asking me this!? Hadn't I already told him I loved him? Why would he doubt that? Did he doubt it? Or did he just want me to say it? Was this really what he wanted to ask, or did he want to ask something else and this was what had come out instead? Was he truly concerned? Did he honestly think that I would wait for him for eight months if I didn't love him? Or was he asking this so he could base his breakup? What would he say when I answered!? Should I say yes? Or no? Yes means that he'll feel guilty for dumping me. No means that he'll break up with me faster. God, what was I going to say!? He'd just asked me if I'd answer honestly... so... after a second that felt like an eternity of deliberation, I decided.

"Yes."

I heard Harry sigh in obvious relief.

"Why?" I managed.

"Just because..." he paused, like he was changing what he was going to say right before he said it, "...because you seem really sad. I needed to know if that was my fault."

Huh. It was his fault. No need to mention it.

"You know I love you, Harry," I muttered, looking away.

He was silent for an eternal moment. I was too cowardly to face him. I was extremely conscious of the two inches of clearance between us, sure that he could see right through me.

Harry touched my face, and I had to look at him for that. Our faces where centimeters apart. His eyes burned with passion, and sadness, and confusion all in one.

"You know I love you, too, right?" he whispered nearly inaudibly, his eyebrows pulling together, waiting. Waiting for a reply that wouldn't come. I was speechless. I hung my mouth open in an "o" looking like an idiot. I couldn't breath.

I could almost hear Harry sigh internally when I didn't answer.

He stood up, releasing his hold on my face and turning to me.

"Goodnight, Ginny."

The sadness burned in his eyes as he turned to walk upstairs.


	3. Chapter 3Carol of the Bells

It's actually quite incredible how you can be inspired by the simplest of things. I was inspired to write this story when I heard the Carol of the Bells on the radio--played by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra--and fell in love with it. I was so inspired, I had a flashing image in my head, a small sentence, actually: "The Carol of the Bells kept on playing as we danced together in the snowing night," and a huge story grew out of that tiny combination of words. I, being only in the seventh grade, am totally amazed that such a feat could occur. My dreams to become a published author seem more possible now more than ever, now that I've been so inspired to create a multi-thousand word story out of a small sentence. So I want to thank you, all my readers, for making my dream to be a novelist seem more possible than it's ever been. You've encouraged me to be the best that I can be, pushed me to fight the ever-dreaded writer's block, and made my dream more real to me than I could've ever hoped.

So, readers, this one is for you. Thank you for everything, and for sticking with me to the end, because it means more to me than you can imagine.

Merry Christmas :)

***

Beware, this is the longest chapter I've ever written :)

Chapter 3- Carol of the Bells

Ginny wasn't making this any easier on me.

As if this wasn't hard enough! I'd never done anything like this before! anything like this! I didn't know what I was doing or what I was going to say or when I should say it, and now I'm worrying over--well the obvious-- whether or not she'll say yes! I mean, she's only eighteen! I'm only nineteen! And now she's sulking around and avoiding me... what's that supposed to mean?! Should I even ask? Does she even care about me at all? Is she bored of me? Does she not love me anymore? If that's the case, then how can I possibly do this? How can I do this?!

I swear. These girls are gonna kill me.

***

It was dark and musty. I heard water streaming nearby, but I could hardly see two feet in front of me. All of a sudden, the scenery changed. I was in a hallway at Hogwarts, sunlight streaming through the windows, shining on a door in front of me. My hand reached out in front of me, about to open it. The moment my fingers touched the knob, something fell from the ceiling. I glanced down, and gasped in horror. It was the diary, Riddle's diary. I couldn't stop myself from picking it up to examine it. When I brought it up to my face, it flipped open to empty pages, glowing. Writing appeared on the pages, without anyone seeming to have written them. It said, "He loves you not... he loves you not... he loves you not, pitiful child... he's annoyed... he loves another... you are but an insignificant annoyance...' I screamed, and the scenery changed. I was in the Chamber of Secrets, with a much younger Harry shaking my shoulder's, begging me to awaken. Suddenly, I was in the Gryfinndor common room, Ron holding the Quidditch cup above his head, everyone screaming and cheering. Harry stepped through the portrait hole. I ran to him, but before I could reach him, he stepped aside, pulling a tall, blond girl into his arms and kissing her. He pulled away from the girl, only to give me a cold, sneering glare. The glare then turned into the sad, passionate look he'd given me the night before. I looked up to see it snowing, and when I looked back to Harry, our faces were inches apart. He whispered, "You know I love you, too, right?" He began stepping backward. Backing away, still giving me that sad, passionate look, he said, "Wake up, Ginny."

I sat bolt upright in my bed, cold sweat beading on my forehead. It took a minute for me to calm down, my breath quivering, chest heaving. My hand clamped on my forehead, and I glanced at the clock next to my bed; 4:26 a.m. Mum was probably up, but the thought of another Weasley waking up before 9 o'clock in the morning was downright hilarious.

Why had I woken up gasping, like it was some kind of nightmare? Oh yeah. Because it was a nightmare. I remembered Harry's sneering glare. I remembered the diary saying that he loved me not...

...And I remembered Harry shaking me awake in the Chamber of Secrets, desperately trying to save me. I remembered his words the night before..."You know I love you, too, right?"... I remembered when he held my face, our faces inches apart... I remembered him sounding relieved when I told him that I loved him... I remembered throwing my arms around him in his sixth year, and I remembered the countless times he'd told me he loved me.... I remembered our hysterical crying when we were reunited after the battle... I remembered him telling me that I was the last thing he was thinking of before Voldemort shot the spell...

I couldn't make it all fit.

The clock changed to 4:27, and I fell back into bed, sinking into a dreamless sleep.

***

I'd never really noticed how beautiful the Weasley's garden was. It was absolutely gorgeous. And the pond, further out, was even prettier. The sun wasn't even up, and somehow the pond found a way to glitter.

I sighed internally as I thought of how ugly these things were in comparison to Ginny.

It was really difficult to think about this subject with Ron sleeping on the other side of the room. Every time I would think of an idea, I would glance at Ron, and nearly start hyperventilating. He couldn't stand the relationship where it was. And now... now this? I disregarded it. I could deal with Ron later on.

What I really needed to think about was what the hell I was going to say. No... maybe I should do this in order. First, come up with a place. Then some words. Oh, no, should I do the one-knee thing?! Some guys don't... oh, crap. Now I got this to worry about.

Things like this required some degree of planning!!

I glanced at the clock. 4:28 a.m. Ginny was probably sleeping, while I stayed awake like the creeper I am.

I sighed out loud, and wondered for the millionth time, how the hell I was going to pull this off.

***

Waking up on Christmas morning was always a shocker for everyone. Mum kept the house reasonably clean, and it was nice looking and all that, but Mum, Dad, Fred and George always went all out to decorate for Christmas. It was absolutely spectacular.

The first thing I noticed when I stepped outside my bedroom was how incredible the staircase and hallway was. The staircase had a glowing gold band wrapped around it, not tinsel, not a garland, but a glowing gold band. The balusters where glittering with red and green, not tinsel, not garlands, but glitter, each baluster with either red or green glitter. Upon every other baluster was a sophisticated bow that alternated between red and gold. My bedroom door wasn't all the way up the stairs, and I was just beginning to think what they'd done all the way to the top.

I slowly, cautiously, began descending down the stairs. The walls were covered in a special type of wallpaper, and it shone with silver, and every few seconds, a flash of glittering color ran across the wall, encompassing the whole wall as it fell like a meteor's tail down the stairs. It was still quiet, so the rest of them all must've still been asleep. However, there was soft Christmas music playing in the background somewhere. Right then, it was playing Santa Claus is Coming to Town.

I walked down the stairs, to the kitchen. Fred and George didn't do anything special in here. Mum was quietly drinking a cup of tea while the pot on the stove stirred itself.

"Morning, Mum."

She was startled anyway. "Oh, good morning, darling. I wasn't expecting anyone to be awake at this hour."

"What time is it anyway?" I said, reaching up in the cabinet for a teacup.

"A bit past six," she said, pulling a chair out from the table for me to sit at.

"Hm," I said. It was quiet as I slowly poured a cup of tea and added mounds of sugar to it.

I listened to the wind outside. It was still killer, but it seemed to be calming down a bit, releasing some of it's fury little by little.

I sat down quietly next to my mother.

I suddenly felt horrible. I hadn't gotten my mother anything for Christmas. Molly Weasley didn't hang out with her friends. She didn't play Quidditch all day. She did nothing but keep up with the house and raise her children. Suddenly, I realized that my mother couldn't have been very happy. Where was the meaning? The fun? It wasn't there. All she did was... well... be a mother. She was the one who kept it all together. The one who made the Weasley house home. I felt an epiphany of appreciation towards my mother.

I took a sip of my extremely sugary tea.

"Merry Christmas, Mum." I said. It was a certain variation of 'I love you'.

She turned to face me. Her hair was dotted with gray spots, the wrinkles in her skin becoming more and more profound each Christmas. She smiled a very crinkley-eyed smile.

"Merry Christmas, sweetie," she said, still smiling. She took a sip of her tea.

After a moment of silence, my thoughts again strayed to Harry. What was up? What was he plotting to do? If he wasn't plotting anything, then why was he acting so strange?

"Mum?" I said uncomfortably.

"Yes?"

"When you and Dad were dating, did he ever... act funny?"

Molly Weasley's expression drastically changed. Her sweet, motherly smile ripped into a mischievous, sly, impish grin. She knew. This was the classic, 'Mum, I'm having boyfriend problems' conversation. Damn. I was hoping she wouldn't notice, but of course, my mum was not an idiot.

"Well, sweetie, your Dad did act funny at some point, yes," she said, smiling widely.

"Why?" I asked, not bothering to hide my curiosity anymore.

"Well, let's see... he was a bit fidgety when we went on our first date... he acted strange when he bought me my first diamond bracelet..."

"So... mostly... big stuff?" I said, creasing my forehead in an effort to keep this casual mother-daughter talk.

Mum laughed, unable to contain herself, obviously laughing at how I unconsciously insisted on a hypothetical scenario.

"Ginny, what's really going on here?"

"That's the point! I don't know what's going on! Harry has been acting all strange lately, haven't you noticed? He's been all bubbly and acting out and he was nervous!" I bellowed in one long phrase. As I tried to catch my breath I realized that what I said would've made no sense at all to my mother.

"Alright, Ginny, why don't you just explain to me what's bothering you about Harry?" my mother said, trying to calm me down and not set off another nuke.

And me and mum had a heart to heart. I explained to my mum exactly what Harry was doing and why it bothered me. We spent what felt like hours analyzing body language and piecing together tiny clues, comparing them with Mum's experience, and constantly refilling our teacups; my mum adding a tablespoon of honey and a dash of sugar to her cup, and I adding monstrous amounts of sugar to mine. We sat, mother and daughter, early Christmas morning, drinking tea and laughing it up while the wind outside slammed against the windows. It was actually kind of fun after a while, but I didn't forget that we were doing important work. I needed to figure this out.

While I never consciously stopped wondering about Harry, there was a new type of love fore my mother. I suddenly stopped taking her for granted. I stopped being annoyed at her and started desperately, frantically appreciating her. I couldn't shake the incredible guilt that I felt for not acknowledging her sooner. She was an incredibly strong woman, and no one ever even said thank you. From that point on, to the rest of my life, things were different between us.

I didn't notice it at the time, but there really was something miraculous about this particular Christmas. For example: seeing my mum in a completely different light.

"Don't worry, Ginny. I'm sure Harry will pull through," she said, laughing again, sitting down again after refilling her tea cup again. I wondered vaguely were it was all coming from, the tea.

"Thank you, Mum. For everything. For being Mum, for keeping up on the house... for putting up with an insane, crazy teenage daughter..."

"Oh, nonsense, Ginevra. I deeply appreciate it," she said, blushing, and sipping her tea to hide the red.

I smiled.

***

At around 9:30 a.m., Fred, George, and Ron came charging down the staircase. They were screaming a war cry of sorts, "Ho!!! HO!!! HO!!!!!" and then screaming at the top of their lungs, 'MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!"

Fred came strolling down the walk into the living room, carrying Ron on his shoulders. This was weird, yes.

"Oi, mates, we're gonna have a very merry Christmas indeed, are we not, Ronald?"

"Hell yeah, Holey!"

And the three of them screamed again. It was an extremely loud morning.

Fleur and Hermione came down after about five minutes. It was obvious that they'd tried to shove pillows over their heads to keep the noise out, but they'd been unsuccessful in drowning out Fred and George's obnoxious screaming.

"Oi, Freddie! Turn up the tunes in here!" screamed George. He was carrying a glass of butterbeer, opening all the blinds, and jumping up and down for no apparent reason.

Music blared from apparently no where, playing earsplitting remixes of classical Christmas songs.

Gradually, the Burrow awakened to Christmas morning. Progress was slow at first; Dad and Bill were especially slow, Hermione and Fleur were sluggish, but everyone began waking up and gaining more enthusiasm as the morning progressed. Ron and Bill were in the kitchen, helping Mum prepare mass amounts of food for everyone to pig out on while we opened presents. We didn't open presents right away, because...well... I don't honestly know. It's mostly been Fred and George calling all the shots every Christmas, and we all just sort of followed their lead. I guess they wanted to get drunk on butterbeer before opening.

The morning slowly dragged, and at around 10, I realized something.

Where was Harry?

I threw a glance to my mum, and she was looking at me. I shrugged my shoulders in a way that made her understand exactly what was up. She twitched her head to the stairs, then winked.

I sighed, and progressed my way to the staircase. I began walking up the stairs up to where Harry's bedroom was.

I creaked open the door, and saw him jump up from his bed, hiding something behind his back.

I raised my eyebrows in suspicion.

"What's that?" I said immediately, in a very suspicious tone, letting him know that I was totally on to him.

He looked like he was desperately trying to find a way out. I felt sorry for him.

"Er, uh, nothing of consequence," he said, still looking at me sheepishly, and obviously trying to hide it.

"I didn't ask you what it wasn't, I asked you what it was," I said, stepping into the room and closing the door.

He looked so desperate before, but now that was joined with unmistakable fear. It was kind of funny for a fleeting moment; how I trapped him inside his room.

I advanced on him.

"What is it, Harry?" I said in an almost fierce tone.

He sighed, and brought his arm out from behind his back. It was a small box wrapped in shiny blue paper.

"It's your Christmas present. I was trying to wrap it before you figured out where I was."

I looked around and saw tons of crumpled up wrapping paper and tape sticking everywhere. I wondered why he didn't just use his wand.

I laughed.

"You really have that much difficulty wrapping a three-by-three inch box?" I laughed.

"Er, well, uh... yeah," he said, laughing on the last word.

"Well sorry for interrogating you," I said, "but let's go downstairs now, before Fred and George get too drunk."

He laughed again. He tossed the blue box in his bedside drawer.

"Aren't you bringing that with you?" I asked.

"It's for later," he said simply.

I sighed. "What the hell is it, Harry?"

"Nope. Later," he smiled impishly.

I sighed, and we went downstairs.

***

It was all quite wonderful. I got a new sweater from Mum; this year, it was a sparkly silver. From Dad I got a beautiful necklace. From Fred and George, I got a new Pygmy Puff to keep Arnold company, which I named Allie. Everyone got just what they wanted. It was all quite fun, even if Harry was screwing around with me. When Ron asked about my present from Harry, he just told Ron what he'd told me... it's for later. Ron gave Harry a sly grin. Oh, damn the little bugger, he knew! He knew what was going on! And I.. I didn't!! Ohhh.....ohhhh...

Well this sucks. My big brother knows about my dating issues. Lovely.

I just wonder when I'm finally going to know what's going on.

*** A/N: if you are sick of reading and you hate long chapters, now would be a good time to stop reading and pick up the rest later! :D:D

Christmas dinner came and went.

Mum went all out for the ham this year. I mean it was a monster ham. Ron and Bill had helped her all day to prepare all the food for Christmas dinner, and that made me feel good; to know that she was being appreciated at least a little.

It was a little after 7 o'clock, and everyone had broken up into groups. Fred and George had taken to playing regular Christmas songs and not the remixed ones, giving the whole house a nice effect. Bill, Fleur, Charlie, Mum, and Dad were sitting next to the fireplace exchanging stories. Ron, Hermione, Fred and George were next to the Christmas tree, talking about new ideas for the Wizard Wheezes.

I sat alone, watching it all with a smile. I would've normally been with Ron, Hermione, Fred and George, but something kept me from them. I wished Harry was next to me, talking to me, and I wished that there wasn't a barrier between us. Ever since I began sulking about Harry's suspected infidelity, there was an unspoken rule to maintain minimum contact. Even if he'd tried to resolve things last night, we still weren't speaking willingly. I had a sickening feeling that I'd overreacted and that this was my fault.

I felt a large, warm hand enclose around mine. I turned.

"Why don't you grab your coat and come on a walk with me?" Harry whispered in my ear.

Everyone was to immersed in their conversations to pay any attention to us.

"Alright then," I muttered back. I stood up cautiously, seeing if anyone saw me. Everyone was oblivious, save one impish smile. Ron watched me out of the corner of his eye, and mischievously smiled. Well he and no one else knew what was going on, so I tried to ignore it.

I stepped out of the living room and into the main hallway. I yanked my coat of the coat hanger and followed Harry out the back door.

The brisk winter air caught me off guard for a moment. While I adjusted, I turned to look at Harry.

His brilliant green eyes shone in the darkness, and snow was gently falling in front of his face. He was wearing a long, classy black coat with matching gloves, hiding the massive muscles on his chest and arms he'd developed from the brutal Auror training. He caught me scrutinizing him, and smiled, embarrassed.

"So, where are we going, Mr. Potter?" I said, laughing.

"Well, Miss Weasley, I regret to inform you that it is a secret, and that you must wait to find out."

I laughed.

"Just go, Harry," I said, exasperated.

We trudged through the snow. I followed his lead, and occasionally, he would look back and grab my hand to help me over a pile of snow. We walked for what seemed like hours.

"Are you drunk, Harry?" I laughed, "Where are we going?"

"We're almost there," he assured me.

I saw some sort of a light ahead. I turned around; the house was pretty far, but I could faintly hear Fred and George's christmas music.

"What is that?" I said, asking about the light ahead.

"It's an ax murderer, Ginny. He's holding up an ancient lantern that remains lit only on human blood," he said in mock horror.

"Oh, shut up," I muttered, and he chuckled.

My heart began to race as we approached the mysterious light, for reasons I couldn't identify. Harry turned around frequently to smile at me. The snow stung at my eyes.

Wait a minute. The snow.

I stared up at the sky, dumbfounded.

"Harry!" I shouted, amazed.

"Yeah?" he didn't seem concerned. He walked back to where I was standing, and grabbed my hand, pulling me forward with speed. As I spoke, he approached a line of pine trees, and on the other side was the light.

"Harry, the... the wind! The wind sto-"

The words were ripped out of my mouth.

Harry had pulled me through the thin line of trees, and the light that I'd seen was a series of lanterns hung on the trees. We were in the small cove outside our pond.

The trees made a wide semicircle in front of the pond. Spherical lanterns of purple, blue, and white dotted the line of trees, illuminating the entire cove. The snow had been cleared, and the grass was visible. It wasn't cold here, as it was outside the line of trees. It was just like summer, but with the gorgeous snow and icicles dangling from the treetops. The lanterns light fell upon the occasional icicle, reflecting off of it like a mirror and colors flew out into the cove. The spring atmosphere was definitely work of a powerful spell.

I became vaguely aware that I was standing around like an idiot with my jaw dropped to the ground, staring up at the lanterns and icicles with a slightly dazed expression on my face. I shook my head back and forth a few times, and looked around to see Harry sitting on the old bench on the edge of the pond. I slowly approached him.

I sat. I folded my hands in my lap, and shook my head at the ground, smiling.

"Why, Harry?" I looked up from the ground to his face. He was staring across the glistening pond, grinning.

"It's part of your Christmas present," he said, still grinning.

I breathed a shaky laugh.

"Will you quit giving me freaking riddles, Harry? Please!" I said, trying to laugh and cover up the seriousness of the statement.

Harry just laughed.

We were silent for a moment, listening to the distant music coming from the walls of the Burrow.

"Can I ask you a question?" I said to break the silence.

"You just did," he laughed.

And I laughed very hard after he said that. I couldn't figure out why it was so funny that he'd used the same words I did when he said the same thing the night before. Was it irony? Mocking? I didn't know. I could just laugh for what seemed like years.

When I calmed down, I brought my hands up and slapped them back down on my lap.

"You know, what? Yeah, I guess I did," and I chuckled again, using Harry's reply from last night, "but if I asked you a question, would you answer truthfully?"

"Depends on the question."

"Is that a yes?"

"Probably."

"Harry, do you love me?" I looked at him with honest curiosity in my eyes.

Harry stared out across the pond. My heart raced so fast that I was sure he could hear it.

After a few minutes, he turned to face me.

Time froze for a fleeting second.

In that fleeting second, I felt pure impulse, pure instinct, wash over me, and I got an inexplicable feeling that my whole entire life was going to change. It was the same feeling I'd gotten in the marquee at Bill and Fleur's wedding, the same impulse I'd felt when I'd stepped through the portrait into the Room of Requirement to see Harry for the first time in months, the same instinct I'd gotten when I'd sensed Harry walking past me under the invisibility cloak. Those were life and death situations. A stabbing nanosecond of fear struck me, and the rest of the fleeting second was anticipating what change my life was going to undertake this time.

Time unfroze.

Harry had a look in his eye that I'd rarely seen before. Only once in my life had I seen this look in his eyes. He looked at me like a man seeing the sun for the first time. With incredible awe and adoration and love. The only other time I'd seen him like this was the day that we'd been reunited after the Battle. With the amazed, loving, look in his eyes, he smiled and looked at me for a long moment before speaking.

"Ginevra Molly Weasley, I love you so much, that I'd cross an ocean of torture and pain if it meant that I could be with you for a single second. I'd trade everything I own, everything I could borrow, and my entire future if it meant that you could be happy. I'd die a thousand times and suffer a million ways if it meant that you would never be pained."

He paused. My mouth hung open as I processed his words.

"I love you so very much, Ginny, that I would risk being beaten to shreds by Ron by asking him about our relationship."

He paused and smiled again.

"So you're answer is yes, Ginny. Yes, I love you. Now, can I ask you a question?"

I nodded, dumbfounded, heart pounding out of my chest.

"Will you marry me?"

He looked at me, waiting.

In a second, I understood.

Harry wasn't cheating on me. He was nervous because... he was acting out...

Oh.

And inexplicably, I burst into the most hysterical laughter that I'd ever heard in my whole entire life. It was so loud, so... everywhere... that I didn't think that I was going to be able to take it. It was the hugest, most "Oh" scenario I could possibly ever imagine, and laughter was all my mind could process, the only thing I could hear, the only thing I could see, the only thing in the whole world was "Oh". I could not stop laughing at my own stupidity, the reality of it all, the realizing that I had been blowing everything out of proportion... I could not stop laughing. Hysterics was suddenly the fattest understatement that I'd ever heard.

I heard someone yelling.

I tried to focus on the yelling for a moment.

"GINNY! Why are you laughing? Why the hell are you laughing? Oh God, can you even hear me?"

My ribs hurt, but I couldn't stop. I attempted at some speech. But all I could manage was "Ha-Harr-Ha-Ohhh!" and I kept on laughing. I motioned with my hand, trying to grab his shoulder or something to let him know that I'd heard him, and I tried extremely hard to steady myself.

If moments felt like years before, it was nothing to this. It could've been decades or centuries or millenniums for all I knew. I simply could not stop laughing. I opened my eyes, and looked at Harry, and began an exercise to calm my body. I focused on each of my vocal chords, relaxing each one of them, knowing that this was the only way I was going to shut up. It took even longer to calm my laughter to a small chuckle, and it could've very easily been the hardest thing I'd ever done.

"Harry," I said, still laughing a bit, my ribs screaming in protest.

"What? What is it?" he asked frantically.

"Shut up."

And I reached across the bench to pull his face to mine. Our lips met in a desperate kiss. Harry grasped my face, and moved closer to that I didn't have to reach so far. I still had one hand cupped to his face, and the other was locked securely around his neck. Harry processed my kiss, and he must've thought it to be victory for him, because he pulled me even closer, and kissed me with a passion he never had before.

When we broke apart, I touched my forehead to his, and looked into his eyes, and smiled widely.

"Yes," I breathed, out of breath both from the kiss and my over-hysterics,"yes, Harry, yes I will marry you." I breathed another shaky laugh on the last word.

And music filled the cove from no where, my absolute favorite Christmas song in the whole universe, The Carol of the Bells, was playing in celebration of my "yes". I immediately recognized the Trans-Siberian Orchestra's signature, the lovely violin and flute, beginning the song. The electric guitars followed. Then the epic bells. It was incredible.

I stood up, Harry's hand in mine, and asked, "How the hell did you know?" I yelled, over the extremely loud "ding, ding da dum, ding, ding, da dum,".

"Ron," he said, smiling bigger than I would've ever thought possible. So that's how the little bugger knew.

"Dance with me," I commanded.

"As you wish, love," he laughed. It really wasn't even that funny, and he still laughed. I guess that's what happens when you get engaged.

And Harry and I danced to the Carol of the Bells for an eternity. As we were dancing, I asked him.

"So when were you planning on giving me my Christmas present?" I demanded.

Harry laughed. He stopped, reached into his jacket pocket, and pulled out my little box wrapped in shiny blue paper.

"You know," he said, ripping open the paper himself, which at first I thought was rude, but immediately knew why, "I'd chickened out and told myself, 'screw it', but... on second thought..."

He tossed the paper to the ground, and held up a small black box.

He took my left hand.

He knelt to his right knee.

He opened the box.

He held it open directly above my outstretched hand, allowing me to see.

I couldn't breath.

With the music still surging around us, I looked into the small black box, and nestled in the protective fabric, was a simple, elegant, gorgeous marquise diamond ring.

I couldn't help it. I burst into tears. Never before had I cried out of happiness. Well, once, but I hardly ever count the Battle with other events in my life.

"Oh, don't cry love," Harry whispered.

"Oh, get on with it," I said, impatiently wiping the traitor tears with my right hand.

Harry chuckled. "Ginny Weasley, I love you more than anyone else in the world. I live to make you happy, and I'd die to keep you happy. You are the sunlight in my mornings, the stars in my nights, and I love you with every beat of my heart and breath of my soul. There would be no greater honor to me than to serve you as a husband for the rest of my life, and I would care for you and love you with every second of every day. Ginny Weasley, I ask you, again, and properly this time, will you marry me?"

Those were the sweetest words I'd ever heard in my entire life. Tears ran silently down my face.

"Yes," I choked, crying full speed now, and Harry slid the incredibly gorgeous marquise diamond ring on the fourth finger of my left hand. I cried hysterically as Harry held my hand, stood up, and brought my left hand up to my face for me to see.

My hands were a little dry from the winter weather, but the ring on my fourth finger positively shone in the lantern light.

The Carol of the Bells surged relentlessly around us as I hugged and kissed Harry with every fiber of my being. I was so happy, so shocked, so... happy... And at that moment, I thought of nothing but Harry being one hundred percent mine for the rest of eternity.

Happiness swelled inside me like a huge balloon, and it wouldn't stop, because the balloon swelled into my stomach, then my lungs, to my throat, and then I would let out a cry of disbelief through my lips. Every cell in my body was so happy that I didn't think that I was going to be able to survive it.

No one deserved to be so happy.

The Carol of the Bells kept on playing, adding a cherry on the already too perfect cove.

***

Review, everyone! I plan to write and epilogue, but it may not come for a while!

Thank you so very, very much for reading!!

Review and tell me if my seventh grade novice writing skills are satisfactory or not :D

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night! :)

Coming Soon: an Epilogue to this story!!


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